


The Genius Pariah

by Lyoko_Native



Category: Code Lyoko Evolution
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, Canon Compliant, Day 18, F/F, Isolation, Jealousy, Loneliness, Unrequited Love, codejuly17
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-12-03 18:37:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11538105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyoko_Native/pseuds/Lyoko_Native
Summary: (Post-Mutiny) Laura looks at the Lyoko Warriors, and she wishes she could call them her friends. She looks at Aelita and wishes they were more.





	The Genius Pariah

The bell rang, dismissing the students for lunch. They stood up, gathering their books and their tablets and started heading for the cafeteria. Odd rolled back on his feet and sighed loudly. “Ugh, I barely got any sleep last night. I just know I did terribly on that test in history.” He complained.

Ulrich chuckled. “As opposed to how well you do on a full night of sleep?” He teased gently. Jeremie chuckled and grinned.

Odd frowned at him. “I know I'm not the best student,” he lowered his voice, “but to be honest, I forgot how hard it was to balance school with saving the world.”

Aelita started walking. “I would have thought you'd be all for going back to Lyoko.” She said, matching his volume.

“Normally, sure, but my parents have cracked down on me this year!” Odd returned to his normal voice. “Used to be, so long as I wasn't on the verge of getting expelled, my parents seemed convinced I could do no wrong!” He lowered his voice again. “This year, I'm not convinced that X.A.N.A didn't possess them!”

Jeremie bumped into him. “Serves you right. You could do worse than reapplying yourself to your studies!”

Odd stuck his tongue out at him. “We can't all be geniuses, Einstein.” He started pouting. “What kind of world would that be?”

“I often wonder!” Jeremie said dreamily.

“Wouldn't that be an interesting X.A.N.A attack!” Ulrich laughed.

Aelita covered her mouth. “A world where Odd was as smart as you?” She suggested. “You'd hate it.” She waved him off. “You'd have us on Lyoko within twenty minutes!”

Jeremie rolled his eyes. “Come on, I thought we were mocking Odd.”

There were quick footsteps behind them. When they turned, Laura stood behind them. She fixed her hair daintily and tried to look as though she hadn't chased after them. She smiled at them. “Hello, you four. Headed to the cafeteria?” She asked.

“Well, it is lunchtime!” Odd smiled politely as Aelita turned away to hide her deep frown.

“Right. Naturally.” She said. “Um, there's an exam approaching in physics in a few days.” She played with her hair nervously. “I was thinking, if you'd like to, maybe we could study together? Or perhaps tutor you, whatever the case may be.”

There was an awkward silence. Laura’s betrayal was fresh in their minds, though she had forgotten it. She'd forgotten everything about Lyoko and X.A.N.A. So why was she still hanging around? As she waited for an answer, she started squirming. Ulrich spoke. “Um, actually, we already made plans. We’re going to study at Yumi’s.”

“O-oh.” She stuttered. Laura smiled hopefully. “Then, maybe I could come with you? I'm sure one more won't be an issue…”

“Yumi’s parents aren't really comfortable having strangers over.” Odd lied. “It took weeks to convince them just to have us over.”

Laura’s face fell. “Oh. I see.”

Jeremie frowned. “Yumi’s waiting for us. Maybe next time?”

Aelita frowned. “Sorry.” She said sharply. She watched her for a moment before turning around and following the boys.

Laura was left in the hallway. She was surrounded by people, but had never felt more alone. Making friends had never been her strong suit, having largely spent her life around adults. Impressing them was the only way to get their attention, but impressing her peers only seemed to create distance.

She chewed on the inside of her cheek. She was rather jealous of Jeremie. They shared many qualities, such as their intellect, ambition, and work ethic, but unlike him, she just couldn't connect with people. Her envy burned in her chest, sticking and hurting her gut like knives.

And Odd! How easygoing he was. She wished she could relax and let her hair down. He was funny, too--another skill she hadn't mastered. Laura knew she didn't possess a silver tongue or cunning wit. Any jokes she told fell flat. Not to mention his large family was so open and loving… she wished she had that. She couldn't place this emotion--something closer to longing than envy--but it felt like ice in her neck.

And then there was Ulrich! Superficially, there wasn't much to be jealous of. He wasn't particularly smart, though he made up for it with physical prowess. But he was surrounded by his friends, friends she longed to be accepted by, to know and share secrets.

Laura’s eyes followed Aelita. It was no secret Aelita didn't like Laura. She rather drown herself in oil than let her in. But Laura admired her still. She was so genuinely talented. Aelita could sing, and she could make beautiful music. She was intelligent, easily fourth in the class behind her, Jeremie and Hervé. And she wasn't just smart, she was wise. Knowledge and application.

And, Laura noted on shaking knees, Aelita was very, very beautiful. Perhaps at one point she'd liked Jeremie, convinced with playground logic that they were perfect for one another because they were both smart. But whatever delusion she had tricked herself with had gone away. Whenever Laura thought of her future, which was a constant, ominous thing in her mind, Aelita was always there. She couldn't push aside thoughts of Aelita’s smile. A beautiful and rare occurrence.

Sometimes, Laura would even dare to imagine Aelita’s smile directed at her. She wasn't so arrogant to imagine a situation around the smile. No, Laura knew that Aelita would never smile genuinely at her. Perhaps sideways looks and smirks, but never smiled. So it was an isolated event, something to get her through tough times. Through lonely times.

But in this moment, it didn't help. Laura felt her throat close up, and she felt her grow hot. She covered her mouth to disguise an ugly sob, and she sprinted for the bathroom. She closed herself in a stall for a while, hiding from the world. When she had finished hiding sobs, she walked to the sink and started washing her face with cold water. Laura looked at her reflection. Her face was still wet, and she was glad that she didn't wear makeup. It would have smeared down her face. It would have only made her look like a bigger mess and failure.

Laura jumped when the bell rang. She'd cried through lunch. She dried off her face, collected her thoughts, and then looked around. She'd have to run or do damage control if anyone had seen her cry.

But, no, even here, she was alone. Her breakdown had gone unnoticed. She had gone unnoticed. Laura grabbed her bag, sighed sadly, and she went to class.

**Author's Note:**

> tbh i should give up on angst and write children's books. until then, however, i have the skill of making people feel bad


End file.
